Spring-wheel.



DE WlTT CLINTON.

SPRING WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. s. 1911 1,258953&.

Attorneys Patented Mar. 5, 1918. /J 7 V 9 z SHEETS-SHEET 1.

DE WITT CLINTON.

SPRING WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5. I91].

1 ,258 ,53 1. Patented Mar. 5, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Witnesses lnventor Z WMM by W.

Attorneys DE VVI'JTEL CLINTON, F MYRTLE POINT, OREGON.

SPHING-WHEEL Specification-0f Letters Yatent.

Patented Mar. 5, 1918.

Application filed February 5, 1917. Serial No. 146,757.

To all whom it may concern:

lie it known that I, Dr: lVrr'r CLINTON, a citizen of the United States,residing at Ililvrtle Point, in the county of Coos and State of Oregon,have invented new and useful Spring-Wheels, of which the following aspecification.

The device forming the subject matter of this application is a 'igwheel, and one object of the invention is toprovidc a means wherebypneumatic tires and other like elements subject to puncture anddeterioration may be dispensed with.

Another object of the invention is to improve the tire construction andso to place the retainers which hold the outer ends of the springs, onone of the tire sections, that said retainers will act as guides for theother of the tire sections, when the last specified tire section is slidtoward that tire section whercwith the retainers are asscmbled.

it is within the province of the disclosure to improve generally and toenhance the utility of devices of that type to which the presentinvention appertains.

With the above and other objects in view which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention resides in the combination andarrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafterdescribed and claimed, it being understood that changes in the preciseembodiment of the invention herein disclosed can be made within thescope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit of theinvention.

in the accompanying drawings Figure 1 shows in side elevation, a wheelconstructed in accordance with the present invention, parts bein."broken away;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing one of the springs employed in thewheel;

Fig. 3 is a partial longitudinal section taken in the medial plane ofthe wheel;

Fig. i is a cross section taken approximately on the line 41- of Fig. 3.

In carrying out the present invention there is provided a main rim 1which may be connected by means of spokes 2 with a hub The spokes 2 maybe replaced by any other suitable means for connecting the main rim withthe hub. The main rim 1 has side flanges 4, as clearly shown in Fig. it,the side flanges 4t definingra circum scribing groove in the rim. Thegroove is denoted by the reference character 5.

The numeral 6 denotes generally, a tire, which prcit'erably is made ofsome metal, steel being preferred. The tire (3 includes twocircumfcrentially continuous sections; which abut adjacent the medialplane of the wheel, as shown at S. The sections 7 of the tire 6 are heldtogether by transverse securing elements 9. tions 7 of the tire 6 areequipped with side flanges 10, slidablv overlapped on the outer faces ofthe side flanges l of the main .rim 1. Retainers 11 are applied to themain rim 1 within the contour of the groove and are held to the main rim1 by means of securing elements 19. The retainers 11 are ecptipped withoverhanging cnd flanges 14. Retain- .ers 15 are applied to the innercurve of the tire .6 and embody end flanges l6. Disposed between themain rim 1 and the tire G are springs 17, one of which shown in Fig. 2.The springs 17 preferably are of helical form and embody a plurality ofrectangular convolutions. The terminal convolutions 18 of the springs 17are engaged, respectively, by the flanges 16 of the retainers 15, and bythe flanges 14- of the retainers T.

Especial attention is directed to the securing elements 19 which unitethe retainers 15 with one of the constituent sections 7 of the tire 6,to one side of the median plane 8 0f the wheel, as shown clearly in Fig.4t. Owing to this construction, when the securing elements 9 areremoved, the left hand section 7 may he slid toward the right handsection, in Fig. 4:, until the sections abut along the line 8. Undersuch circumstances, those portions of the retainers 15 which project tothe left of the plane of abutment 8 in Fig. at, act as guides, directingmovement of the left hand section of the tire toward the .right handsection, when the sections are advanced to abut along the line 8.

The device hereinbcforc described is so constructed that there are noexposed delicate parts likely to puncture or deterioration, and thestructure will be found of peculiar utility when called upon to performheavy duty of the kind imposed on devices of this type in heavyvehicles, such as motor trucks and the like.

The terminal convolutions of the springs 17 are slightly larger than theremaining .110

The constituent secconvolutions of the springs. The terminalconvolutions of the springs, therefore, may be engaged by the flanges14: of the retainers 11 and by the flanges 16 of the retainers 15,

the intermediate convolutions of the springs yielding under compression,Without striking the flanges of the respective retainers.

Having thus described the invention, What is claimed is 1. In a springWheel, a tire having side flanges; a rim having side flanges; helicalsprings engaged terminally With the tire and the rim; inner and outerretainers disposed between the springs and having flanges overhangingthe terminal convolutions of the springs; a single securing elementuniting each outer retainer With the tire, and a single securing elementuniting each inner retainer With the rim, the ends of the outerretainers engaging the flanges of the tire and the ends of the innerretainers engaging the flanges of the rim to prevent the retainers fromrotating on their respective securing elements and disengaging theflanges of the retainers from the terminal convolutions of the springs,the intermediate convolutions or" the springs being oi smaller di-(topics of this patent may be obtained for naeaeee ameter than theterminal convolutions thereof to clear the flanges of ad1o1n1ngretainers when the springs are compressed. 1m

2. 111 a spring Wheel, a tire made up of laterally separable sectionsWhich abut adjacent the median plane of the Wheel, each section of thetire having an inwardly porjecting flange; a rim slidable between the 35flanges; springs located between the tire and the rim; means forattaching the inner ends of the springs to the rim; retainers engagingthe outer ends of the springs; and means for securing the retainers toone sec- 4-0 tion of the tire, the retainers projecting laterally beyondsaid section of the tire Within the contour of the other section, tose've as guides therefor, when the sections are placed tcgether; andsecuring devices uniting the 4 sections of the tire.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixedmy signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

DE ITT CLINTON.

Witnesses:

CARL L. DAVIS, E. G. RoBnRTs.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.

